


Try it to end the panic.

by columbine_and_asphodel (onlycrooks)



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Gen, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-25
Updated: 2012-10-25
Packaged: 2017-11-17 01:26:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/546034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onlycrooks/pseuds/columbine_and_asphodel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Takes place between Danny's revelation about Las Vegas in the car and the beginning of 2.03.</p><p>Chin and Steve have a chat.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Try it to end the panic.

**Author's Note:**

> Genuinely the first fic in which I've abandoned my strict "No fragments allowed" and "Never end with a preposition" policies, and I'm kind of frightened by that.

Steve is staring at his computer, trying to figure out how to leave comments in Microsoft Word, when he hears a knock on his door. Looking up, he finds Chin standing in the open doorway, a folder in one hand and a closed off expression on his face.

"Come on in, Chin. What's up?"

Head dipping forward, Chin closes the door and walks to Steve's couch, where he sits down heavily, the folder idly swinging by his side.

"Nothing's up, brah. Just wondering what's happening with Danny."

Steve tilts his head without intending to. He doesn't know of anything happening to his partner.

Chin must see that on his face, because his lips tug down.

"With Rachel? I know he told you about Vegas."

"Yeah, but that's it. He said he's going to fight her for custody since this is Grace's home now."

"And his," Chin adds firmly.

Steve shrugs, about to say something about New Jersey, but Chin cuts him off sharply.

"You're not seeing it, are you?"

"Seeing what?" Steve demands, feeling a headache forming.

"That Danny's in trouble. He doesn't want to leave, Steve. He hated it at first, but Hawaii's his home now."

"His home's with Grace," he responds, more bitterly than he'd intended.

"You don't believe that any more than I do." Chin shakes his head, tone disappointed. "Danny loves her, yeah, but he can't be with her all the time. He's going to have to let go eventually, and what's he going to do then? He already left New Jersey for her. It's his childhood home, a place where he's got good memories and people he knew, but that's the past, Steve. Jersey isn't his home anymore; it can't be, because Hawaii is. He's got good memories and people he knows here, too. He even has us, his own 'ohana. What if he loses and Rachel and Stan take Grace to Nevada? He's going to have to do it all over again, and who's to say that'll be the last time they'll move?

"All that fussing he does, the talking about Jersey and home? He does that when he's uncomfortable. You've noticed he doesn't do it as often anymore, haven't you?"

"What are you talking about? He whines constantly," Steve interjects, more because Chin's making sense and making _him_ uncomfortable than any actual disagreement.

"About Hawaii? Not so much, brah. It's mostly about you and the situations he winds up in- situations he isn't used to dealing with. He's complaining because he doesn't know what else to do. Danny's a talker. He feels something, he talks about it. He gets confused, he makes noise so he can think through it. It's all that keeps him from exploding, getting that hot air out.

"How's he going to deal with somewhere different yet again? This time, you gave him a place to belong, just as you did for Kono and me. That may not happen if he goes to Vegas. He may just wind up living in another substandard place with nothing but Grace keeping him alive, because no matter how often we talk- and you can be sure that at least Kono and I will, and Amy Hanamoa, too, I'm sure- it won't be enough. He's as physical as he is verbal. If he can't see and touch people, he can't be sure they're safe, and just because we're not in the same state, doesn't mean he'll magically forget to worry about us."

Finished for the moment, Chin folds his arms across his chest and settles farther into the cushions beneath him, leaving Steve with his thoughts.

The worst thing is that Chin's right. There's no way Danny will just acclimate to life in Vegas. He's the type of person who puts down deep roots and makes a place his _home._ He'd barely survived getting uprooted the first time, and Steve doesn't have a single doubt the second will only be worse. Which is a problem because he's seen how Danny lives, and Chin's right about it. The man barely takes care of himself outside work; he'd live on Chinese takeout, most anything deep fried and coffee if Grace (and Steve) weren't on his case about it. In Vegas, there'd be only Gracie to watch over him, and she's going to be a teenager soon, her own problems and rebellions not far away. She's a good girl, but she'll still be a teenager, which will mean less Danno-Monkey time and more time making Danny worry. Without that stabilizing force, Danny will struggle to balance his life, and he won't have Five-0, or even just Steve, to drag him out. He'll make friends- maybe, if he keeps his mouth shut or finds someone as tolerant as Meka- but they won't know him, not the way Steve, Chin and Kono already do.

Danny's luck has been less than bad when it comes to his blood family and marriage, but Steve and Five-0 have been good for him. Take them away, and it will be those first few months all over again, but worse, because Danny will have lost _two_ homes and _two_ families, the threat of being at a loss once more always hanging over his head.

How can Five-0 possibly take care of their own when one is living across an ocean?

Which leads Steve to something Chin had said. He'd almost missed it, sneaked in as it had been, among the other points Chin had made, but Steve _had_ heard it.

He'd heard it and his blood is running hot and cold- fury at the thought of it, fear that it may be true.

"What do you mean, you and Kono would talk with him?"

"I mean that she and I will call him, text him, e-mail him, mail things to him, Skype him- anything we can," Chin says reasonably. "I also said that Amy Hanamoa would, too. She's not the type who'd overlook Danny's lifestyle or forget what he did for her family. She and Billy, though he's too young to keep his memories of Danny, are just as much a part of Danny's island family as we are; she won't let him sink into himself if she can help it."

Steve shakes his head, not doubting Chin and Kono would do exactly that, and while he doesn't know Amy well, what he has seen of her agrees with what Chin's saying.

"I know you'll look after him. That's not what I was asking. Why only you two- three? You don't think I'd do whatever I could for Danny?" he snaps, half afraid of the answer.

Chin shakes his head, lips twisted into a grim line.

"That's it, though, isn't it, Steve? If Danny leaves, then there isn't much you _can_ do for him, and once you see that- actually see it, actually recognize that he's too far for even you to reach- you'll drop him. You won't mean to, but you will. Without a tangible way of being with him, you'll curl in on yourself and let him slide away." Chin sighs, his hands shaking slightly around the folder he still hasn't mentioned. "You're like him when it comes to these things; you both work better if you can use your ears, hands and eyes rather than typing or talking, even. Danny may say a lot more than you- than anyone, really- but most of it's just him thinking aloud or working through his thoughts. Try watching him with people. He says more with his body than his mouth."

"I watch him with people," Steve objects, petulant.

This time, Chin's smile is serene, an obvious sign he's got something on Steve.

"I guess that's true. I don't think you ever actually look away from him. You've probably been trying to count the hairs on his head or memorize the scars he's got." Both men ignore Steve's guilty cough. "I'm telling you to watch him, not as _Steve Watching Danny_ , but as _Stranger Analyzing Danny_. Do me a favor, though?"

Suspicious, Steve nods.

"Do it after you've fixed the mess you made."

"What? What mess? All you've talked about is Danny moving."

The look Chin gives him could be pitying, but could just as easily be angry.

"'What mess?'" he echoes, spitting the words. "I'm talking about the mess with you not telling Danny that you care whether he leaves or not. Yes, I know what you said; Danny doesn't talk to himself quietly, whether he's sleeping or in his office. I'm talking about the fact that you're leaving your partner high and dry when he's in one of the most terrifying situations of his life. Don't interrupt me, McGarrett, or I swear I will cancel the anti-virus protection on your computer and loudly proclaim, once it's infected, that you shouldn't be watching pornography at work. Now, as I was trying to tell you, Danny's scared out of his mind, even if his ruffled feathers say he isn't. You owe it to him, as his partner and for a thousand other reasons, to go over there, knock on his door, go in even if he says he's busy and apologize for being insensitive and that _no, you weren't encouraging him to leave_."

Steve blinks, thrown both by the threat- he doesn't really watch, not in the sense that it's the videos that have his hand down his pants, but they're a good accompaniment, a bit of background noise to fuel the scenes in his head- and the realization that Chin isn't angry. No, Chin's sharp words and narrowed eyes, the downward twitch of his lips, all tell him that his friend is on the verge of fury.

"I'm sorry, Chin. It isn't like that. I just want him to be happy, and Grace does that. What was I supposed to say?"

The fury in the older man's face doesn't dissipate, but Chin has always had his emotions closest to the surface. He isn't a saint, quiet though his rage sometimes appears, and he's always cared for Danny, especially after seeing Danny's devotion to proving Meka's innocence.

Steve may be in more trouble than he knows how to handle.

"You can't seriously be okay with Danny leaving." Chin's voice is dangerously flat.

"Of course not, but what can I do? If that's what has to happen, then I'll support him. He's 'o-"

"I hope you aren't about to say _'ohana."_

"Then what am I supposed to say?" Steve asks, exhausted and frustrated. "'No, Chin, I don't want Danny to leave?' Is that it? Because I can say that. I can also say that Danny's my family more than my parents and Mary, that I trust him more than I wish I did. I can't stop him from leaving, though, and I wouldn't if I could. I just want him to be happy, and if Grace leaves, that won't be here."

Chin shakes his head. "That's not the point."

"Then what is the point? Because I don't see it."

Steve resists the urge to try to stare his friend down but knows it would be pointless. Chin isn't intimidated by him, glowering or otherwise.

"The point, McGarrett, is that you're in love with Danny and don't know how to deal with it. By not making a fuss and letting him go, you're taking the easy way out. If Danny isn't here, you won't have to think about or face it. Or worse, face _him_."

"I'm not-" At the glare Chin levels at him, Steve shuts his mouth, reworking his escape plan.

His silence stretches long enough for Chin to lean back, the glare easing somewhat.

"You know, Mamo and I were talking-"

" _Mamo_ knows?" Steve moans, reluctantly accepting that Chin won't let things go.

"Of course Mamo knows. He knew it the moment he saw you- maybe not that Danny's the one, but he knew someone was finally doing something right- so wait a moment and let me finish." When Steve doesn't object, Chin nods and continues. "We were talking the other day about you and Danny- Calm down, brah. I meant you and Danny separately. Regardless, we were talking about you, how much better Danny's doing and the ways you've changed- and stayed the same- from how you were before this mess, when Mamo told me something surprising."

"Was it a list of everyone I've ever met- since he's psychic now?"

Chin shoots him a look that says his patience is wearing thin.

"No, better. He told me that when your mother and father were still newlyweds, your dad was terrified of her. She knew him better than he did, was always there for him, kept him going when work was hard and understood that he was who he was so well, that he was afraid of losing her. Even then, he knew what losing her would do to him.

"Apparently, though, even years later, even after you'd been born, Jack was still worried about what would happen if he lost her.

"See any parallels? You should, because that, for all your differences, is where you and your dad couldn't be more alike. Cath's lovely; she's an easy fit and you get along. She doesn't mess with you or get under your skin. But Danny, who shouts and shoves and does paperwork better than anyone I've ever met? He knows you better than she does. Yes, he does, because those ops and things you did with the Navy? Those aren't you, Steve. You did them and they shaped you, but they aren't you. Knowledge isn't understanding. Cath may know what you had to do better than Danny, but when something happens, who do you tell first? Who did you turn to with the mess with the Governor?"

Steve flounders, caught in the flood of information. It's one thing to sort through a mess of intel on terrorists or learn some impersonal fact or formula in school, but his dad- his entire family, really- is a mystery to him and has been for so long, he doesn't know what to do with what he's learned. He doesn't know how to process the neon sigh saying he trusts Danny with too much but won't stop trusting him. There's a light blinking in Morse code, flashing _SOS_ , but where's he supposed to look for help?

Danny.

A sly smile crawling across his face, Chin takes pity on him.

"I guess the real point is this: Stop running away from him. He's on the same page as you, Steve, just a little lost."

With that, Chin stands up, stretching his long limbs and wincing.

 _"E ho'a'o no i pau kuhihewa,_ brah. Good luck- not that you'll need it, will you, Smooth Dog?"

Steve shakes his head as the older man gets up and walks out, thinking of what he can do to get things going with Danny, when he spots the folder Chin had brought with him. It's just lying on the floor, plain and boring and demanding he look inside. Why not? If it were personal, Chin wouldn't have left it here in the first place, let alone forgotten it on the floor...

It's in his hands within a blink.

"What?"

Inside is a boat's name, an address and a note in Kono's familiar print.

_He knows you, too._

**Author's Note:**

> I really just wanted something to fix the whole, "No, go to Vegas. Whatevs," vibe I got from Steve. Oh, and I wanted a story in which Chin isn't a totally zen, no visible emotions guy. Maybe it's just me, but I see him as an expressive character.


End file.
